He killed a six year old when he was twelve. He is now sixteen and he may be released from prison in less than another year. He will have checks and restraints for more years.  Lionel Tate’s life experiences pose many questions. What did the death of a little girl half his age teach him? What was he taught by being imprisoned?  What did he learn while in jail treated as an adult? When released, will he be an adult?  Would it have been rational for him to go to school while he was in jail although he was put away for life and could not use his education?  Some vexing questions are listed below.

1. His mother was sleeping while her son killed a playmate. She made the bad choice not to accept the plea (now offered a second time).  Why is it not she who is punished for the years Lionel Tate spent in jail?
2. Was the time served by Lionel Tate punishment?  Was it something else?
3. How can the public that applauded his conviction believe that they taught Lionel Tate a lesson and that lesson was learned?
4. Why now, after reflection, has the “public” changed its mind?
5. Is there not something seriously wrong with the Florida judicial system and its laws?
6. Is it not the people who support the system who made the outrageous mistake in the first place? What does this say about them when they later correct what should not have happened at all?
7. What are the costs of the mistake and what is the cost to rectify it?  Can it be rectified?
8. Will Lionel Tate come out of his experience the better or the worse for it?
9. Will the unenlightened electorate make the same mistake again and again?

You bet it will. I was born, lived and educated in New Jersey where mistakes abound.  Florida makes my home state look good.